• Agile/Scrum - Work Life

    Random Musings of a Scrum Master #1: On Leadership and Transformation

    August 14, 2022 - By 

    It has been 4 weeks since I undertook this role of being a full-time Scrum Master for a Product team, technically 2 weeks since I have officially stepped into the role facilitating the Scrum events, and my mind has been running the “how to be a better Scrum Master/how to leas my team well” process asynchronously since lol. Also like a sponge of ideas that takes in cues from what I read and what I see in my environment, connecting the dots from what I have learned in the past. Lightbulbs here and there. A happy problem to have I…

  • Work Life

    Winning the (Work) War this Week

    October 8, 2021 - By 

    “All battles are first won or lost, in the mind” -Joan of Arc This cannot be more true in my experience the past days adjusting to my new work. I’m a newbie in the company, don’t know much about the ins and outs yet, especially connecting to the right set of people to get information that I need to do my job well (yet). I have no formal experience dealing with clients directly, especially not as early as in the proposal phase (and especially doing the proposal), yet here I am involved in this big project. I have a mentor…

  • Work Life

    Goodbye, Walmart Japan/Seiyu. And thank you :)

    September 23, 2021 - By 

    I have officially resigned from Walmart Japan/Seiyu effective September 30, and I have rendered my last day last Friday. It was such a bittersweet day (or bittersweet week!), as I get to talk to people like never before, with the thought of saying goodbye and reminiscing the fond memories we had together since I joined the company last April of 2020. Allow me to indulge a bit and walk down memory lane, as well as share lessons I learned along the way. Prior to joining Walmart Japan, I have mostly worked for big Japanese SIer companies, so I was really…

  • Live Action / TV Series

    Start-Up Kdrama ~Ep12: a mid-series review reflection of sorts

    January 16, 2021 - By 

    [SPOILER ALERT!] I honestly thought the series ended here. I mean I can see it an open- yet very fitting and hopeful ending. Do-San x Dal-Mi shippers won’t agree with me on this, but that is my personal opinion. Up until this episode we have seen the characters grow immensely–discovering the masks they wear in sometimes heartbreaking ways and become true to themselves–and more importantly, mustering the courage to confront the consequences of their actions. And for some, making painful decisions to the path they think is right. I am loving just about every bit of this show–except for the…

  • Personal Life

    Sometimes in life, we need to learn to give up too

    January 16, 2021 - By 

    I’m not taking about giving up on life altogether. That’s the ultimate giving up that we do not want to reach, and exactly why we need to learn to give up in other aspect of our lives. Like… Giving up on certain people (especially toxic ones) Giving up our perfectionist tendencies, or self-damaging expectations and standards Giving up the possibility that things will get better(giving up control on things you cannot control)—accept things, move on and start anew (NOTE: you will get better. The situation itself may not, but YOU will be better) Giving up on pleasing people, and do…

  • Personal Development - Personal Life - Work Life

    Demystifying Diabetes

    January 11, 2021 - By 

    Never have I learned about diabetes and medtech in my entire life more than this week (technically speaking, last week) It started when I found out about Health2Sync (https://www.health2sync.com), a diabetes-tracking startup (and app) based in Taiwan and expanded to Japan market since 2018 after seeing it as a viable and strategic Asian-expansion market. It is designed to sync with different devices and apps to help diabetic patients keep track of their health. (It can be used by anyone, but is particularly valuable for those with diabetes as for whom the app is primarily for) First, the stats and background.…

  • Personal Development

    A (Painful) Plea to Leaders/Future Leaders

    December 8, 2020 - By 

    “Pain + reflection = progress” Ray Dalio One of the harshest feedback I have heard from a boss is, “Wag puro satsat. Aksyon aksyon din” (Don’t be all talk, actually practice what you preach) It was a harsh yet much needed wake-up call then, for which I am grateful. Nevertheless the leaders whose words really inspire me and push me to greater heights and that which I look back on up until now and still get inspired, are words of encouragement and trust, words of undeserved praise, especially during the times I look down on myself and doubt my abilities.…

  • Personal Development - Work Life

    Strength as a double-edged sword

    November 11, 2020 - By 

    Our greatest strength can be our greatest weakness, as I realize even more as of late. My strength, and alongside it matters that I care about, have the power to shape me for the better or harm me when I am not careful, when I end up relying on it more than I should in order to compensate for what’s lacking in my own love tank. If we are not careful and quick to realize that the battle is within our own mind and soul, we can easily blame our circumstances or ourselves, and end up depleting our emotional love…

  • Live Action / TV Series

    An Ode to Anne, my kindred spirit

    September 11, 2020 - By 

    Sometimes I wonder, having finished Anne with an E now and admiring in retrospect what wonderful characters and story L.M. Montgomery has created in the world of Anne of Green Gables, how much my life could have turned out differently had I known and loved this novel in my childhood. Perhaps, I would have found myself relating to this orphan girl as she tried to find her place in this world, looking for a place to belong and be accepted as she is, in the company of people she can truly call “home”. Perhaps, the times I felt alone and…

  • Personal Life

    Revving up the Engine again… 2020

    May 3, 2020 - By 

    I have a confession to make. I usually get excited to start things, get bursts of inspiration with ideas and dreams on articles/posts to write about, activities to do, new years’ resolutions and all that, but only to fizzle out so quick and not follow-through them. My excuse: my ENFP weakness lol. Especially in blogging, I would usually “dream” of reviving my writing passion, but end up simply walking down the memory lane of by golden blogging days back in 2011 when I was so active in the blogosphere. So here’s another attempt at restarting this. We shall see if…